Jake Gyllenhaal’s new movie The Covenant borrows its best scene from James Cameron, making the wartime drama even more dynamic. When Sgt. John Kinley (Gyllenhaal) hires Ahmed (Dar Salim) to be his interpreter, he proves an invaluable member of the team, and when a raid on an IED factory goes bad and Sgt. Kinley and Ahmed find themselves on the run, he becomes even more indispensable. After Sgt. Kinley is wounded by Taliban soldiers, Ahmed drags him over a hundred miles of inhospitable terrain back to base, becoming a hunted man as a result. While this dramatic story is incredibly effective, it actually owes a debt to one of James Cameron’s best movies.
Horrified to find that his savior hasn’t been given the special visa that would guarantee him and his family asylum, Kinley mounts an epic rescue mission behind enemy lines with the help of a pivotal character in The Covenant, private contractor Eddie Parker (Antony Starr). Mistrust foments between the two from the beginning because of Parker’s attitude, and once Parker learns that Sgt. Kinley and Ahmed are at the top of the Taliban’s most wanted list, Sgt. Kinley’s suspicions about Parker’s character seem confirmed. After Kinley locates Ahmed, and they race to the rendezvous point, Parker’s loyalty comes into question, leading to a pulse-pounding scene straight from Cameron’s playbook.
The Covenant Uses Aliens’ Exciting Bishop Rescue
Director Guy Ritchie, like Cameron, understands how to make the most of adrenaline and emotion in his rescue scene. Pinned down by Taliban soldiers on the Naghlu dam Kinley frantically searches for Parker, and just when Kinley thinks Parker chose money over loyalty, Parker’s “Angel of Death” swoops in to save the day in spectacular fashion. This mimics the Bishop rescue scene in Cameron’s Aliens, when the android Lt. Ripley (Sigourney Weaver) has distrusted as an agent of The Company from the beginning is delayed in rescuing her and Newt from the platform, making the moment when he arrives as the refinery explodes even more thrilling.
After everything Kinley went through to rescue Ahmed, the look of despair on his face once he thinks he’s let him down because of his misplaced trust in Parker is palpable, as is the acceptance of their fate as bullets rain down on their position. This overwhelming sense of hopelessness is key, because just as Ripley and Newt accept that they’re doomed, so do Kinley and Ahmed, which makes the surge of hope when Parker pulls through so powerful. Not only does the construction of both scenes add undeniable tension, but they also offer Parker, like Bishop, the chance to prove himself as a hero and earn Kinley’s respect.
The Covenant Mirrors Ripley’s Rescue Of Newt
The use of the Bishop rescue scene wouldn’t have had the same effect if Ritchie hadn’t also applied Cameron’s template of Ripley’s rescue of Newt which makes Aliens so gripping. Newt helps the squadron of space marines survive LV-426 despite being swarmed by xenomorphs, and when she’s suddenly abducted by the hive Queen, Lt. Ripley makes a vow to rescue her because of her selfless sacrifices. This mirrors the decision Sgt. Kinley makes when he decides, despite having the opportunity to remain safe in the United States, to return to Afghanistan alone and find Ahmed.
Kinley knows he’s only alive because of Ahmed’s understanding of Afghani culture and the Taliban, just as Ripley was only able to survive because of Newt’s intimate knowledge of the xenomorph’s movements. His dependency in their most desperate hour on Parker to rescue them, just like Ripley placing her fate in the hands of someone she feels betrayed by, is the culmination of a long and arduous struggle that deserves an epic emotional payoff. By the end of The Covenant, the addition of this story beats makes it more realistic, emotional, exciting, and timeless than it would have been with a more straightforward approach.
